LTB 227/23 - Mail Centre Supernumerary / Surplus Issues Update - DRP

[POSTMAN]

https://www.cwu.org/ltb/ltb-227-23-mail ... pdate-drp/

LTB 227/23 - Mail Centre Supernumerary / Surplus Issues Update – DRP
No: 227/23

8th September 2023



For the URGENT Attention of All:

Postal Branches

Divisional Representatives

Area Processing Representatives



Dear Colleagues,

Mail Centre Supernumerary / Surplus Issues Update – DRP

Branches and representatives will be aware of the extensive and prolonged discussions that have been taking place with Royal Mail senior management in an attempt to resolve the supernumerary / surplus issues in Mail Centres (LTBs 167/23 and 205/23 refer).

As highlighted previously, the CWU believe that the approach adopted by the company in respect of this issue represents a breach of the agreed MTSF processes and indeed the reaffirmed commitments in the Business Recovery Transformation and Growth (BRT&G) agreement to adhere to the MTSF agreement.

Numerous meetings have now taken place with the business in relation to the issues and while there has been some progress in some areas, this in the view of the CWU has not been sufficient to ensure that our affected members are protected, which is and will always be our primary objective.

Regrettably, despite the CWU submitting several proposals in an attempt to resolve the outstanding issues, the talks have reached an impasse and the business are indicating that they will move people via the use of their unagreed and unilaterally imposed redeployment pool process.

To add insult to injury, we have become aware that at a time when the business are continually raising the precarious financial status of the company and the need to resolve the surplus / supernumerary issues, an extortionate amount of money is being spent on agency staff at the Midlands Super Hub to process work. Despite the inability to process existing work at the MSH, we understand the business are still planning to migrate work from catchment area sites, which will clearly exacerbate the supernumerary / surplus issue further. We have made representation that no further work should be transferred until the current issues are resolved.

Given the above issues, the CWU have therefore had no other option but to advise Royal Mail that we are utilising the Dispute Resolution Process and a national disagreement now exists in relation to supernumerary / surplus issues and Section 3.1.3 of national BRT&G agreement.

The CWU are seeking meeting involving the GS, Acting DGSP, COO and Chief People Officer to resolve these issues as a matter of urgency.

Until such time as a resolution is achieved, Branches and Representatives should continue to refer matters to the IR Framework, where they believe that the terms of MTSF, the BRT&G agreement or the Section 2.5 Joint Statement have been breached. Representatives are also advised to register disagreements where replacement of our members on any given day is through the use of overtime, casuals and / or agency workers, managers performing work proper to CWU represented grades or where workplan failures are occurring.

In addition, Representatives should also support members affected by the business’ unagreed actions in submitting individual grievances based upon the above, as well as the following:

Breach of the MTSF procedure on how surpluses are identified and should be managed;
Impact upon them either on their private lives and / or medical situation / Equality Act;
Unreasonable job offers, i.e. moving Shifts or work functions;
Breach of the Royal Mail communications that stated employees not participating in a resign of the unagreed duty structure would be placed as supernumerary, as there were no stated consequences for this decision;
Impact of unreasonable job offers in line with MTSF Appendix Considerations – individual cases section.
Members and Representatives are reminded that no employee can be subject to compulsory redundancy or forced to reduce their contract or grade. Additionally, our members under no circumstances should be compelled to apply for external jobs, if they wish to remain in Royal Mail employment. Any redeployment offers must be progressed in line with MTSF processes.

Branches are also advised that requests for Rule 13 ballots in relation to this issue will be progressed by the PE as a matter of urgency where breaches of the BRT&G and MTSF agreements are taking place.

Any enquiries in relation to this LTB should be addressed to Davie Robertson, Assistant Secretary, email: dwyatt@cwu.org quoting reference: 733.02.



Yours sincerely,

Davie Robertson
Assistant Secretary

[Bazbuz]

Great info. Thank you. Although it's a shame I have to come on here to get any.

[2chorizon]

Dear all,

You must now understand the seriousness of the supernumerary/surplus of staff in mail centres after recent communications. There is a redeployment team currently visiting mail centres to try and address surplus staff. It is firmly believed that Royal Mail may try and break the ‘Business Recovery, Transformation & Growth 2023 agreement and re look at current members duties which colleagues have only recently been allocated in order to make more cuts/re-deployment - effectively making new duty holders supernumeraries with the intention of moving/forcing them into delivery offices who are very short staffed due to royal mails own mismanagement.

It is essential that you report to your senior CWU representative/or Branch so they record and report the following:

(i) any managers who are regularly working on any shift;

(ii) any casuals who are in when staff have applied for overtime;

(iii) any breaches of health and safety to skip corners and make it seem like the work is getting done within normal business hours;

(iv) any casuals or managers working on machinery they are not trained for;

(v) Any agency staff being giving training opportunities without staff being offered these opportunities as well;

(vi) Any 1st Class mail/letter not being deployed on time i.e. not meeting USO requirements

Lastly, it has been noted throughout Royal Mail that local managers have recently given duties to individuals without it being advertised within local offices therefore not allowing a fair process to take place this must be reported as local management have no right to act unilaterally…so it can be reported when meeting with senior Royal Mail management to demonstrate/evidence what is occurring on ground level.

Please ensure you forward to this message on to all your colleagues so everyone is aware!

[teesdale]

Unfortunately looks like Dave Ward is saying if your supernumary and you go to redeployment meeting you are on your own. Looks like he becomes a manager and demands full revisions in mail centres when major change happens in March 2024. This happens because start/finish times change by 1 hour. Royal Mail given green light by Ward to go ahead with this know half the people in every mail center will hate the union after this happens. Reason is half the people in every mail centre will be on different duties and different rates of pay after a full resign. Imagine being on weekends for 15 years and then being told you are now on 5 days a week Mon to Fri. Imagine being full time for 15 years and now being forced into part time, losing nearly a third of your income. Thousands will have to be trained on tugs, flats machine, parcel machine, lsm, imps, css, whilst others who have been doing these jobs for years will no longer be needed. Royal Mail will have to change all the pay arrangements and pension payments. Great job Dave Ward.

[GoosyGoosy]

You say: ‘an extortionate amount of money is being spent on agency staff’. Just a suggestion: perhaps if your CWU members spent less time standing around in groups moaning, and more time working a bit harder, far fewer hard-working agency staff would be required.

[SpacePhoenix]

Unfortunately looks like Dave Ward is saying if your supernumary and you go to redeployment meeting you are on your own. Looks like he becomes a manager and demands full revisions in mail centres when major change happens in March 2024. This happens because start/finish times change by 1 hour. Royal Mail given green light by Ward to go ahead with this know half the people in every mail center will hate the union after this happens. Reason is half the people in every mail centre will be on different duties and different rates of pay after a full resign. Imagine being on weekends for 15 years and then being told you are now on 5 days a week Mon to Fri. Imagine being full time for 15 years and now being forced into part time, losing nearly a third of your income. Thousands will have to be trained on tugs, flats machine, parcel machine, lsm, imps, css, whilst others who have been doing these jobs for years will no longer be needed. Royal Mail will have to change all the pay arrangements and pension payments. Great job Dave Ward.

Anyone who gets TPM allowance gets first refusal on their current mech duties. RM won't want to be paying 2 lots of TMP allowance (1 for the new duty holder and 1 the for old duty holder - pay protection)

[Binsey]

That will go next year.
Along with other so called Grandfather rights.

[SpacePhoenix]

That will go next year.
Along with other so called Grandfather rights.

I think if it does go, every last allowance and supplement will also go at the same time along with paid breaks. Could this election be the final election that delivery staff get paid for delivering election material?

[Deadly]

That will go next year.
Along with other so called Grandfather rights.

Get ready for the carrot to be dangled.

[moon71]

[quote=teesdale post_id=1073515 time=1694654452

Anyone who gets TPM allowance gets first refusal on their current mech duties. RM won't want to be paying 2 lots of TMP allowance (1 for the new duty holder and 1 the for old duty holder - pay protection)

And a person who doesn't get TPM should get first refusal of a non TPM duty over some one who is currently getting TPM? That would seem fair right?

[Navalron]

Dear all,

You must now understand the seriousness of the supernumerary/surplus of staff in mail centres after recent communications. There is a redeployment team currently visiting mail centres to try and address surplus staff. It is firmly believed that Royal Mail may try and break the ‘Business Recovery, Transformation & Growth 2023 agreement and re look at current members duties which colleagues have only recently been allocated in order to make more cuts/re-deployment - effectively making new duty holders supernumeraries with the intention of moving/forcing them into delivery offices who are very short staffed due to royal mails own mismanagement.

It is essential that you report to your senior CWU representative/or Branch so they record and report the following:

(i) any managers who are regularly working on any shift;

(ii) any casuals who are in when staff have applied for overtime;

(iii) any breaches of health and safety to skip corners and make it seem like the work is getting done within normal business hours;

(iv) any casuals or managers working on machinery they are not trained for;

(v) Any agency staff being giving training opportunities without staff being offered these opportunities as well;

(vi) Any 1st Class mail/letter not being deployed on time i.e. not meeting USO requirements

Lastly, it has been noted throughout Royal Mail that local managers have recently given duties to individuals without it being advertised within local offices therefore not allowing a fair process to take place this must be reported as local management have no right to act unilaterally…so it can be reported when meeting with senior Royal Mail management to demonstrate/evidence what is occurring on ground level.

Please ensure you forward to this message on to all your colleagues so everyone is aware!

This should all have been noted and sorted out years ago. They started off casualisation of the MCs when leighton and chums were in charge. They are full of casuals and temps. It's too late to worry about it. What's the CWU going to do about it anyway. Send out another LTBs. When the UCW agreed that other offices could sort " blacked mail" on docket, that's when it started to fall apart. Then they separated cleaners, canteen staff, janitors, doorkeepers ect all into separate voting sections and different grades and pay rises. That's when it got f****d. But the clowns in charge now, really need to go. You are still 100% better off being in the union, even though the golden days have gone.